Part 7... Christmas Day

Merry Christmas!

Christmas morning started around 7:30 at our house.  We had the kids come into our room first where we had morning prayer and then we took them out to see what Santa brought them.  They weren't disappointed... they must have been "nice" because Santa brought them what they asked for and a little something extra.

Santa remembered our two visitors... 

I think the elves must have stayed up EXTRA late to make their stockings ;-)  

We were so glad to have them with us!!

Aunt Candace and her friend April

Santa did not disappoint with Brooklyn this year.  She LOVES her dolls!

Most of them dressed modestly... we have daily discussions about that ;-) 

(conversations she initiates!)

Pillow pets are in the house!!  

Brooklyn a Ladybug, Ethan a Boise State Bronco pillow and Briggs a Philadelphia Eagles pillow!  They've been eyeing those pillows for a while now.  That was a total surprise for them!  They have slept with them ever since.

Sterling with his monkey... he could care less really... but I guess Santa didn't want to leave him out of the stuffed animal excitement.

Briggs' gift from us.  These boys love LEGO'S and building things with daddy!

Sterling loves his phone from Aunt Candace and April

Briggs reading the book he made and illustrated for Brooklyn.  It's pretty cute!  It is full of things he likes to do with Brooklyn, like jump on the trampoline, play pillow fight, and trick her "hey there's a cheetah behind you!"  He thought that was pretty funny!  It was so cute to watch him show it to her!

Ethan giving us his gift from school.  He put it under the tree a few weeks before Christmas and he was supposed to do it when we didn't see him do it so it would be a surprise for us.  It was pretty cute when he told us that he put it under there one day when we went downstairs... sneaky, sneaky!

The kids using silly glasses they got from Grandma and Grandpa Jones

Shortly after lunch (lots of leftovers) Candace and April went to pick up April's 4-year old niece Kaya (I hope I spelled that correctly, pronounced Ki-ah) a few hours away, and she was able to spend a few days with us.  Talk about a sweetheart!   

Christmas night... after the kids were nestled in their beds with their pillow pets and cuddly sleeping bags we skyped with my parents while we opened their puzzle game.  It was a good time.  My parents still can't figure out how we got 27 pieces of puzzle out of the box in 12 tries... a mystery... hmmm...

It was a team effort to get the puzzle pieces out

Cory and I working together... A good testing game to see if your compatible for Amazing Race... someday... maybe someday we'll be brave enough to audition, but for now we'll take what you throw at us Mom ;-)

It was a very Merry Christmas indeed!

(Pictured colored in nursery in December)

p.s.  Grandpa and Grandma Hansen were in Florida over Christmas so we went and spent an evening with them the Tuesday before where we were able to exchange gifts and decorate sugar cookies; it was a fun evening!  We also looked at lights and went to visit Cory's Grandparents.  While there, the boys were building lego's on a lego table and Sterling kept going over to the table and ripping off their lego creations and throwing them with a vengeance behind him.  He was pretty serious and it was pretty funny!  He was not to be deterred either!  It was both frustrating and funny to the boys... and to me.  I couldn't quite remove him from the table because it was pretty entertaining!  Brooklyn enjoyed looking at Grandma's fiber optic tree and doing a sticker and coloring book that Great Grandma gave her.  As always, it was wonderful to visit with our family!